Despicable Me Parent Guide
There is nothing despicable about the heartwarming change that begins to take place when Gru discovers the unconditional love of his three new daughters.
Parent Movie Review
During its history, Hollywood has brought hosts of nefarious villains to the screen—Darth Vader, Cruella De Vil, Captain Hook, the White Witch, Count Olaf and Sid the nasty neighbor kid from Toy Story. But now there is Gru (voice of Steve Carell), a wannabe evildoer who picks on little kids and animals. He’s also stolen the Time Square Jumbotron and a couple of miniature versions of famous landmarks.
While his achievements are less than spectacular when compared with other hardcore scoundrels, he plans to establish himself as a real baddie by pulling off a lunar heist with the help of a shrink-ray-gun. Unfortunately, Vector (voice of Jason Segel), a nerdy, high-tech lawbreaker, also wants to steal the moon—and he has the tool and financing to do it.
Attempting to get past the nerd’s state-of-the-art home security system, Gru tries to steal the shrink-ray-gun housed in Vector’s vault. However when he fails to get inside, the mean-hearted criminal comes up with a new idea. Posing as a dentist, he goes to the local orphanage and adopts three children. The heartless matron (voice of Kristen Wiig) at Miss Hatter’s Home for Girls hands the young charges over without even an obligatory home visit. (Some younger viewers may be frightened by Gru’s harsh interactions with the adoptees after he brings them to his house.) Gru then uses Agnes (voice of Elsie Fisher), Margo (voice of Miranda Cosgrove) and Edith (voice of Dana Gaier), to deliver some special “robot” cookies to Vector’s home. The androids disable the security panel, allowing the spindly-legged crook to break in.
But what Gru doesn’t anticipate is the inkling of affection he begins to feel for the tiny trio who treats him with unquestioning kindness. As the day of the big astral theft approaches, Gru is left to decide between achieving his life long goal or attending a dance recital.
After seeing how Gru was treated as a child, it isn’t hard to understand why he turned out to be a little prickly. Yet some parents may find his callous treatment of others, along with the film’s frequent depiction of cartoon violence, to be disturbing for young or sensitive audience members. In one particularly unsettling scene, a child appears to have been impaled by nails. The script also includes a few rude jokes about bodily functions and some cheeky photocopies of a character’s bare posterior.
However there is nothing despicable about the heartwarming change that begins to take place when Gru discovers the unconditional love of his three new daughters. And despite the rather odd makeup of this family, there is plenty to admire about the transformation that puts this villain on the road to reformation.
Directed by Pierre Coffin, Chris Renaud. Starring Steve Carell, Jason Segel, Margo Cosgrove, Dana Gaier, Elsie Fisher. Running time: 95 minutes. Theatrical release July 8, 2010. Updated October 27, 2017About author
Despicable Me
Rating & Content Info
Why is Despicable Me rated PG? Despicable Me is rated PG by the MPAA for rude humor and mild action.
Violence: It appears a child has been punctured when red fluid oozes out of a nail-embedded box she is caught in. Characters are shot, burned, hit by cars, electrocuted, cut off in traffic, bit by a dog and whacked with a hammer. A child hits a parent. People are shot with a freeze gun that encases them in ice. Children are put into a "box of shame" for punishment and verbally chastised. Characters steal items. A character is shot from a cannon. A man is punched, hit in the groin, smashed against the wall, chased by a shark and threatened with guns while trying to break into a home. A child holds her breath until she passes out. A child’s balloon is popped. A bird is shot.
Language: The script includes rude words for flatulence.
Sexual Content: A character makes photocopies of his bare posterior. Naked statues and a naked man howling at the moon are seen along with a picture of a baby’s bare buttocks (no detailed frontal anatomy is seen.) Dancing robots have prominent female features. References are made to crude bodily functions. Some scenes of embracing and kissing are shown.
Alcohol / Drug Use: None noted.
Other: A character invents a "fart" gun.
Page last updated October 27, 2017
Despicable Me Parents' Guide
How does the matron at the orphanage treat the girls in her care? Does she behave the same way with other adults? Do these kinds of depictions of social workers influence the way we perceive real people in these professions? How is the portrayal of the banker another example of negative stereotypes?
When Gru struggles to raise funds for his illegal enterprise, what do the children and his minion workers do? Are their actions aiding and abetting crime? What was the intent of their response? What might they have done instead?
Home Video
The most recent home video release of Despicable Me movie is December 14, 2010. Here are some details…
Home Video Notes: Illumination Presents: 3-Movie Collection (Despicable Me / Despicable Me 2 / Despicable Me 3)
Release Date: 5 December 2017
Universal is releasing the Illumination Presents: 3-Movie Collection featuring Despicable Me / Despicable Me 2 / Despicable Me 3 to home video (Blu-ray/DVD/Digital or DVD/Digital).
Despicable Me releases on DVD and Blu-ray on December 14, 2010 in the following packages:
Despicable Me: DVD Single-Disc Edition
- Despicable Me on DVD
- The World of Despicable Me
- Despicable Beats
- Gru’s Rocket Builder
- A Global Effort
- Despicable Me Game Previews
- Commentary with Directors Chris Renaud & Pierre Coffin Featuring the Minions
Despicable Me: Minion Madness—DVD Double Pack + Digital Copy
Disc 1:
- Despicable Me on DVD
- The World of Despicable Me
- Despicable Beats
- Gru’s Rocket Builder
- A Global Effort
- Despicable Me Game Previews
- Commentary with Directors Chris Renaud & Pierre Coffin Featuring the Minions
Disc 2:
- The Voices of Despicable Me
- Super Silly Fun Land
- Digital Copy of Despicable Me
Despicable Me: Three-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Copy
Disc 1: Blu-ray
- Despicable Me in Blu-ray
- 3 Mini-Movies Featuring the Minions
- The World of Despicable Me
- Despicable Beats
- Gru’s Rocket Builder
- A Global Effort
- Despicable Me Game Previews
- Commentary with Directors Chris Renaud & Pierre Coffin Featuring the Minions
- The Voices of Despicable Me
- Super Silly Fun Land
- Blu-ray Exclusive Features:
- Gru-Control - see the making of the film with behind-the-scenes footage and cast interviews with a PIP window
- Miss Hattie’s Top Secret Cookie Recipe
- pocket BLU - featuring the ‘Minion Me’ and ‘Minion Dominion’ apps for iPhone & iPad
- uHear subtitles
Disc 2: (DVD)
- Despicable Me on DVD
Disc 3: (DVD)
- Digital Copy of Despicable Me
Despicable Me: Four-Disc Combo: Blu-ray 3D / Blu-ray / DVD / Digital Copy
Disc 1: Blu-ray
- Both 3D and 2D versions of Despicable Me in Blu-ray
- Commentary with Director’s Chris Renaud & Pierre Coffin Featuring the Minions
Disc 2: Blu-ray
- 3 Mini Movies Featuring the Minions
- The World of Despicable Me
- Despicable Beats
- Gru’s Rocket Builder
- A Global Effort
- Despicable Me Game Previews
- Commentary with Directors Chris Renaud & Pierre Coffin Featuring the Minions
- The Voices of Despicable Me
- Super Silly Fun Land
- Blu-ray Exclusive Features:
- Gru-Control - see the making of the film with behind-the-scenes footage and cast interviews with a PIP window
- Miss Hattie’s Top Secret Cookie Recipe
- pocket BLU - featuring the ‘Minion Me’ and ‘Minion Dominion’ apps for iPhone & iPad
- uHear subtitles
Disc 3: DVD
- Despicable Me on DVD
Disc 4:
- Digital Copy of Despicable Me
Related home video titles:
Gru tries to scare the girls by telling them there are monsters in the closet. Pixar played on this same childhood fear in the movie Monsters, Inc. A young girl left in a boarding school also deals with a cruel matron in A Little Princess. With her red hair and spunky personality, Annie is a famous comic page orphan who moved to the stage and screen.
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